The opposite to how I viewed my abilities all through my school life. I didn't understand it, I didn't get it, I hated it and I did badly in all assessments and exams. It wasn't until I began my teaching degree, in 2004, that I began a new, more positive relationship with numbers. Instead of being told that the teacher's way was the only way, I was shown that there are many ways to get the answer, all correct, even those ones that may take the longer way around!
The "You Are Not Bad at Math!" statement, is an example of a Growth Mindset approach to life and learning. This is something I have used in my class in the past. The students love it. Positive affirmations to self and others, whole class discussions about motivational videos, photos and stories involving messages and scenarios focusing on changing from a 'can't do' to a 'can do' attitude. This can be simply achieved by including the word 'yet', to the end of a sentence.
I am unable
to do this maths, yet...
My class this year also really connect with the Growth Mindset way of living and learning. The Class Dojo has some great videos we have used to ignite classroom discussions and to unearth some really good questions about how attitudes effect how we accept, interpret and retain new experiences and learning.
"Students with
a fixed mindset believe that they
are born with their abilities and
that they are unchangeable. In
contrast, students with a growth
mindset believe that their abilities
can be developed and improved
over time with practice."
Robinson, C. (2017). Growth mindset in the classroom. Science Scope, 41(2), 18-21.
It's Learning Resilience.
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